Mercier

History

1. 1858

   Champagne for everyone

   Eugène Mercier was born in 1838 out of wedlock and never knew his father. His mother worked in a laundry and a shop, and her son went to work early and saved every penny. In 1858, at the age of 20, he founded his own house in Épernay. He merged it into a partnership with the firm of his father-in-law, Philippe Bourlon, who had been making Champagne in Cramant since 1838. The house's motto was “Champagne for every occasion”.

2. 1869-1877

   Think in kilometres

   In 1869 Mercier bought land on the avenue de Champagne, and in 1871 he began digging the cellars. According to tradition he told his architect: “Think in kilometres, not metres!”. Construction took six years. The result was 18 km of galleries on a single level, 30 metres underground, connected to the Paris-Strasbourg railway line, which carried the wine straight to the capital.

3. 1870-1889

   The cask beaten by the Eiffel Tower

   In 1870 Mercier decided to build the largest cask in the world. It took 150 oak trees to build; it holds around 1,600 hl, or about 200,000 bottles, and weighs more than 20 tonnes. In 1887 it was tested for leaks with wine from that year's harvest. For the 1889 World's Fair in Paris it was hauled for three weeks by teams of white oxen, and Mercier reportedly had to buy and demolish several houses along the route. According to the house, the cask won second prize at the fair; first prize went to the Eiffel Tower.

4. 1885-1900

   Electricity, a balloon and the Lumière brothers

   In 1885 Mercier opened the cellars to visitors and showed guests around in carriages. In 1886 he lit them with electricity and connected them to the offices with one of the first electric lifts. In 1891 President Sadi Carnot toured the cellars. For the 1900 World's Fair he commissioned the Lumière brothers to make a film about his Champagne, considered the first advertising film in history, and at the fair he launched a tethered balloon in which guests drank Mercier 300 metres above Paris.

5. 1904-1987

   From family to LVMH

   Eugène Mercier died on 5 July 1904. In July 1912 one of the firm's buildings in Épernay was destroyed by fire. In 1927 Mercier gave the rights to the Dom Pérignon name to Moët & Chandon as a gift on the occasion of a marriage uniting the two families. In 1970 Mercier merged with Moët & Chandon, and in 1987 both brands became part of the newly formed LVMH group.

6. 2013-2026

   A refreshed brand

   In 2013 Mercier got a new label, logo and slogan. For the 150th anniversary of the cellars in 2022, LVMH announced a rejuvenation of the brand: collaborations with art, cinema and music and a stronger focus on environmental protection. Around 150,000 people a year tour the cellars on an automated train. The house introduced the Vendanges Mercier line of vintages and calls its Blanc de Noirs its flagship wine.

People

Curiosities

1. anecdote At the 1900 World's Fair Mercier's balloon broke free of its tether and drifted with its passengers over Épernay, all the way to Belgium. Everyone returned unharmed. source
2. In 1885 Mercier opened a bottling plant in Luxembourg, then part of the German customs union: wine in casks paid lower duty than wine in bottles. The plant had its own siding to Luxembourg station. source
3. For President Sadi Carnot's visit in 1891, 100,000 candles were lit in the cellars. source
4. Eugène Mercier also invented a bottle-rinsing machine that washed 120,000 bottles a day. source
5. In 1904 the finish line of the Paris-Épernay motor race was on the avenue de Champagne, right outside Mercier's door. source
6. On 26 July 1912 one of Mercier's buildings in Épernay burned down; the Rol agency photographed the ruins, and the photographs are held by the National Library of France. source
7. The founder's great-great-granddaughter, Lorraine Fouchet, wrote the novel “Couleur champagne” (2012), loosely based on the history of the Mercier family. source
8. rumour According to various accounts, the cask was pulled to Paris by between 12 and 20 pairs of oxen. source